Man on mower struck, killed by truck

THOMASVILLE | A man died Tuesday after a pickup truck left East Holly Grove Road and struck him as he was mowing his grass.

BY DARRICK IGNASIAK The Dispatch

THOMASVILLE | A man died Tuesday after a pickup truck left East Holly Grove Road and struck him as he was mowing his grass on a riding lawn mower. Bobby Lambert, 73, was pronounced dead at his residence in the 6900 block of East Holly Grove Road. First responders were dispatched to the accident about 3:30 p.m. The driver of the Chevrolet extended-cab pickup truck, 50-year-old Edward Glenn Burcham of Black Lake Road, Thomasville, was traveling east on Holly Grove Road when a dog ran out in front of his vehicle, said Trooper Jeff Boozer with the N.C. Highway Patrol. The truck crossed the center line and ran off the road to the left before striking Lambert who was on the lawn mower in his own yard, the trooper said.“He was well off the roadway and inside of his own yard when he was struck,” Boozer said. Lambert, Boozer said, was struck from behind and was ejected from the lawn mower as the truck continued through the yard. Burcham's vehicle struck several small trees and came to rest near Lambert's driveway.First Sgt. B.D. Stalvey of the N.C. Highway Patrol said the driver, who was uninjured, and a witness told troopers he was trying to avoid a dog in the road before the truck hit the lawn mower. Stalvey said the Highway Patrol's Reconstruction Unit based in Winston-Salem was en route to the scene early Tuesday evening to reconstruct the accident. Those results would determine if there would be any charges filed against the driver, who was being held Tuesday evening by a sheriff's deputy in an area away from the scene.“Charges right now are pending,” Boozer said late Tuesday night. “We have gathered all the information and we are going to present it to the (district attorney) and it will be up to them on whether they will go with any charges.”Boozer said Burcham was traveling an estimated 30-35 miles per hour and an original travel speed of 45 mph, which is the speed limit in the section of East Holly Grove Road where the accident occurred. The trooper said there is no indication of speeding “whatsoever.”“It certainly wasn't an intentional accident,” Boozer said.Shortly after the accident occurred, Ricky Crigger, a passer-by, pulled up to a stop sign on Johnsontown Road at Holly Grove Road and saw the driver of the truck on the phone. He learned the man was on the phone with 911 and saw Lambert lying on the ground in the lawn.Crigger, who was previously trained in CPR, determined Lambert had no pulse and wasn't breathing. A telecommunicator told him to go ahead and start chest compressions. With hearing family members crying in the background, Crigger administered the compressions for several minutes until a sheriff's deputy arrived on the scene and continued CPR. Firefighters with the Fair Grove Fire Department also assisted with resuscitation efforts until paramedics arrived.“He is very remorseful,” Crigger said of Burcham. “I did pray with him, and asked him to keep his prayers with the family of the victim. I don't believe there was anything in his heart that would lead to indicate that he meant to do this by any means.”Linda Harris, a neighbor, identified the victim as Bobby Lambert. Highway Patrol troopers were interviewing witnesses, including a 12-year-old child who was riding his bicycle and saw the accident unfold.It appeared the mower came to rest on its side, and Lambert's body was about 10 feet from it.Kay Roop, who lives across from the Lamberts, said her son rushed to her side on his bicycle and alerted her of the accident. The former certified nursing assistant arrived on the scene to help but found others were working in an effort to revive the man. Roop said she would be seeking counseling for her son after he saw the horrific accident.Lambert's wife, Barbara, alerted, their pastor, the Rev. Tom Sizemore of Southside Baptist Church in Thomasville, of her husband's death.“(Lambert) is awesome,” Sizemore told The Dispatch at the scene of the accident. “There is no other word for the man.”Sizemore explained Lambert was a deacon, a Sunday school teacher, a father and grandfather. He would often write Gospel songs as he mowed grass, the pastor said.“There is no finer man that I have ever met in my life,” Sizemore said.Sizemore was speaking on behalf of the family who were grieving Tuesday evening.“God is in control,” he said of his message to Lambert's family.Bill Blevins, a neighbor, said he's known Lambert for several years.“He's been a wonderful neighbor,” he said. “…He was just a good man. He had a good character about him.”

Darrick Ignasiak can be reached at 249-3981 ext. 217 or darrick.ignasiak@the-dispatch.com